Voter Intimidation Billboards In Minority Neighborhoods

Popping up in several Midwestern swing state cities, a prime example of harassment and intimidation of the public via advertising:

Billboards stating that “VOTER FRAUD IS A FELONY 3-1/2 YRs & $10,000 Fine” have been popping up in African American and Latino neighborhoods in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Cleveland, Ohio. These billboards are paid for by a “Private Family Foundation” whose actual identity has yet to be disclosed.

If they truly want to discourage you from voting, they should post info about the available candidates.

WeShallSee

LOL Thank you for that much-needed laugh!

Have to admit, though, that this is one issue where I do not understand the opposition? How hard is it to get a freaking piece of ID? Seriously. It blows my mind every time I go to vote and they don’t ask to see my ID.
Eventually, we will eliminate the electoral college and then *hopefully* we can institute compulsory voting. In either case, checking IDs will become mandatory. Every vote should count and should be verified before it is processed…
Just seems like an all-around *DUH*

Jin The Ninja

you statement is overly reductive and shall i say wholly naive.
between 17-24% of disenfranchised populations. do NOT have picture identification. this is due to a number of reasons, the majority of this demographic are over 60.
you’re talking about legastic disenfranchisement and poverty. further complicated by sovereignty issues with certain populations.this also makes compulsory voting highly problematic. by forcing people to legitimise state mechanisms, you further disenfranchise people. democracy should not be compulsory, the entire principal of it is voluntary.

WeShallSee

“between 17-24% of disenfranchised populations” All you have to do is go down to the DMV and get a freaking state ID. That’s it. Are you telling me that the government can’t figure out a way to bus seniors down to the DMV and have their pictures taken? Who else are you referring to?

“democracy should not be compulsory” If you are not willing to participate in the democratic process then you should not benefit from it any way/shape/form. The bare minimum for participation is voting and in a true democracy, every vote would count. It should be a mandatory social obligation, just like taxes (ie: everyone pitches in and then benefits, as a direct result)

Jin The Ninja

in some cases you’re referring to people who were born as sharecroppers or on reservations and only have a short form birth certificate, complicating the process immensely. you’re also referring to people who may be a legal fight with the federal gov’t (i.e. non status native people) and whom may have products of residential schools, people who are not only adverse to the federal gov’t, but have a legal right to sovereignty.
the derogatory manner in which you’re characterising disenfranchised minorities is not representative of the historical, social or legal context in which they live.

“if you’re not WILLING to participate in the democratic process.”
okay, so by your own definition, people must be WILLING participants to democracy i.e. voluntary. Make citizenship voluntary.

and when 53% of your tax dollars go to support murder, resource theft and af undamentally imperial foreign policy- probably NOT a good example of social obligation- unless of course you think murder for oil and profit, somehow BUILDS democracy?

WeShallSee

“and only have a short form birth certificate” Do they also have a social security number? If so, then why not issue a special voter ID, based on your SS number? Everyone who has a number automatically gets a card. That ought to cover just about everyone, yes?

“the derogatory manner in which you’re characterising disenfranchised minorities” Derogatory? I am critical of the system and the excuses which are used to justify its failings, but that does not mean it was intended as disrespectful to any individual or group.

“Make citizenship voluntary” Now that is a thought-provoking idea Until you are eighteen, you could be granted a temporary form of citizenship. But as soon as you turn eighteen, you have to decide: do you agree to vote and pay taxes and follow the rules? If so, welcome aboard! If not, have fun doing your own thing, but please do not expect to receive any of the benefits which are associated with being a citizen. I wants to go there!

“unless of course you think murder for oil and profit, somehow BUILDS democracy” I am completely horrified on a daily basis by the myriad of evil ways in which my tax dollars are manifested in this crazy/sickening world of ours. On this we do not disagree. So how do we go about changing the way in which our hard-earned tax dollars are distributed? What about a Conscientious Clause which states that – due to your religious beliefs/morals – none of your taxes are to go toward war-related endeavors? Just like religious folk were able to opt out of the draft, except that you would still be paying taxes.

Jin The Ninja

you’re still not understanding the implications of mandatory ID. i find
it offensive that you minimise people’s (namely poor and nonwhite) experiences. if large minority of people find attaining ID difficult, perhaps it’s not an “excuse” or a “justification” but the experience of poor, non-white people.

Clear Channel , the owner of the sign company, rather than disclosing who paid for these fraudulent ads, has decided to take them down, very slowly, after the damage of their message has already been done.